About 20 young sailors earned their sea legs this week when they guided their sailboats through the treacherous waters of Eden Isles canals to earn their sailing certificates.

The young sea salts, ages 6-15, were leaning to sail in the Tammany Yacht Club Junior Sailing Program, a two-week course, where the young people learn the basics of sailing.

The final test for the novice sailors was to sail their small boats from the yacht club to the home of yacht club member Carl Bauser. Though the trip is only a mile, it is full of twists and turns through the canals.

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What makes this class so special, said Martin Smith, the commodore of the Tammany Yacht Club is it is the first junior sailing class since Hurricane Katrina. There were 60 students this year and 10 of them will begin a one-week course next week, where they will learn the secrets of racing sailboats.

There was so much excitement about the final test that Bauser rented a helicopter so he could take aerial photos of the event. So not only did the young people have to concentrate on their sailing skills, they couldn’t let the roar of the helicopter distract them.

But they all made it in one piece. Being new at this, there were a few glitches at the end with a couple of sailors hitting the Bauser pier rather hard, but the only injuries were a few bruised egos.

“There are always going to be a few bumps,” said instructor Jonathan Bauer, 16, from Slidell. “They are all good students.

“They are just doing great,” agreed head instructor Sophia Griscom. “This was just a whole lot of fun.”

For Griscom, this was a new experience. She learned how to sail in Boston, and coming down here was a pleasing adventure for her.

The kids though were happy to get their sailing certificates and said they enjoyed sailing.

“The best thing is that you can go fast,” said eight-year-old Damien Robinson. “I had a good time.”

Two brothers, Caleb and Aidan Keister sailed the same boat. Caleb, 6, handled the helm, while Aiden, 8, manned the sails.

“You can have so much fun,” Aidan said. “You learn cool things like tacking.”

The students were all rewarded with a swim in Bauser’s pool and lunch. Also, Ron Stewart from West Marine awarded a $25 gift certificate to Kyle Bordelon for the dubious honor of being the last boat to leave the yacht club harbor. Stewart stressed that this was not a race, and Bordelon did finish the trip. West Marine also donate $400 worth of safety equipment to the program.